Conrad Green

9.9

From Mag. An absolute wow of a bottle. The nose is crazy intense, lucid and profound. Dark plum fruit with a whiff of band aid, iron, black pepper, a tangy meatiness. Loads of delicate floral notes floating around, but a soulful and pristine bottle. As fresh as an early 2000’s bottle but so much age and precision going on. Wonderful. Just spectacular. — 13 days ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

It’s a night of consecutive first year decades, 90 & 80. Enjoyed in reverse order.

I had an 80 from Andy Beckstoffer’s cellar at Pebble Beach Food & Wine in April 24 with Andy & Tor Kenward. This library bottle I bought recently at K&L is better than what I had a Pebble. Just look at the cork!

Glorious mouth entry. Juicy, perfect, ripe fruit that shows age but it is not missing a step. Blackberries, black raspberries, dark, juicy, poached strawberries, baked rhubarb mid, dark cherries, candied raspberries to raspberry pudding. Just a touch of v/a, chocolate pudding/fudge, mocha, caramel, light, soft, sun tea, softened baking spices- cinnamon, clove, nutmeg & vanillin, some fresh & dry herbs, dark, rich soils with dry leaves, evolved, dark spices w/ some palate heat, dry top soil, limestone powder, hint of mint, with & fresh florals that are; dark, red, blue & liquid violets and lavender sprinkled in, perfect acidity and perfectly balanced, softly tensioned, knitted and a refined finish that lasts two-minutes.

This bottle is in a perfect spot & as good as it gets. Perfectly stored. It has another 5 years. Liquid, velvety tannins. One of the more perfect bottles I’ve had in 5-10 years.

Photos of, my tasting at Pebble Beach Food & Wine. The retail wine shop at Spanish Bay, Andy Beckstoffer & Tor Kenward. — a month ago

Alan Weinberg

9.7

a near perfect bottle—slightly oxidative, creamy, nutty, layered with lovely texture. — 2 months ago

Alan Snitow

9.2

Mine. Good bottle. — 18 days ago

Ericsson

9.6

This bottle is bound to make any day that much better. It’s young but composed with ample elegance and perfect balance. A true gem, even at this age. — 20 days ago

Jay Kline

9.1

Opened 24 hours prior and decanted for sediment before returning to the bottle; enjoyed over the course of two days. The 1981 pours a deep garnet color with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous with notes of tart brambles and plums, green bell pepper, tobacco, leather, all of the decomposing earth and soft baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium, mostly integrated tannins with medium+ acid, borderline high. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium. Overall, a wine that is a reflection upon the vintage and at 43 years of age, that’s a big compliment. The 1981 is very much alive and will likely live for a very long time. However, it is backward, rustic, and somewhat tough to love unless you’re an old-school masochist. But I’m guilty and this wine is charming despite all of its green character. Drink now and over the next 30 years probably. — a month ago

"Odedi"

9.2

#AgedWineTuesday

Dark golden/ brownish in color.

Sweet nose with lots of flower notes, over ripen apples and spices.

Full-bodied with high acidity.

Sweet on the palate with pears, overripe citrus fruits, spices, apricots, tropical fruits, earth and bitter herbs.

Tangy finish, but too earthy for my taste.

This 34 year old is delicious, but a touch unbalanced, with too many earth notes for the fruits.

I've had a few vintages of this gorgeous wine, but none of them were this old.

I let it breathe for an hour, but it still wasn't as good as I hoped. It could just be this specific bottle, though.

A blend of 80% Sémillon and 20% Sauvignon Blanc. Drank from a 375ml bottle.

13.5% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$500. — 2 months ago

Robert Torretti

9.3

Lovely bottle of 1986 Ducru Beaucalliou. A little smoky and not as long as the last bottle but solid with rib chop, sautéed spinach, mushrooms Diane, and Beef Fat Fries at Hawksmoor NYC. Staff said they were going to decant and then did not. I think it would have opened more had they. Next time: insist. — 21 days ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.4

Light straw , very young looking . Constant very fine perlage . Quite closed at first then crushed rocks , lemon peel , ginger , white flowers , brioche . On the palate good richness and intensity , lemon , orange rind , buttered bread , touch of roast nuts . Very fine mineral tinged , intense finish . This needs time and will improve over the next 10 years or so and last well a further 5-10 . A good follow up to the 2014 , this shows more backward and will take even longer to reach its peak. Perhaps a little less detailed and precise than the very mineral 2014 but that might just be a question of needing more time in bottle. — a month ago

Doug Powers

9.0

Found a box of this the other day in the cellar, the original Jaboulet box was damaged and so I’d moved it to a non-Jaboulet box 7-8 years ago. Further, this was the only bottle showing any real ullage (about 1.5”), so opened it first (I do have more, and will report when I open the next bottle).

Color is medium-dark ruby, some bacon fat and meaty aromas, lovely fruit still, structured has softened, long finish, but I’m sure a pristine bottle will show even better!! — 2 months ago

with Jim